Automatic apparatus for preventing collision of railway-trains.



No. 838,138. Y PATENTEDDEG. 11, 1906.

' M. PRIVAT. AUTOMATIC APPARATUS FOR PR APPLICATION FILED JAN. 23. 1904.

EVENTING COLLISION 0P RAILWAY TRAINS.

I Be it known that I, MAURICE PnrvAr, a

UNITED 'sT TEs PATENT OFFICE.

MAURICE PRIVAT; OF ANGOULEME, FRANCE. AUTOMATIC APPARATUS'FCR FIREVENTING coinslofl or RAILIWAYQTRAINS.

T0 all-whom it mag concern: v

citizen of the French Republic, residing at 750 Rue Hemicycle, Angoulme, France, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Automatic Apparatus for Preventing Collision ofRailway-Trains, &c.-, of which the following is a specification.

Said invention consists in substance of a lo, plurality of electromagnetic devices arranged at intervals along the track, stops actuated I by such magnetic devices moved into and f out of working position, and mechanism car- 4 ried b'y themotor-carriage actuated by the sto s when inworking position vfor 'au-tomat ica ly braking and, stopping the motor-can.

riage and trains The invention is described in the-following specification, of which the accomanying drawings form a part ,wherein simiar characters of reference designate like'or equivalentparts wherever found throughout the several v1ews,-and in WhiChw Figure .1 is a side view of a short section'oi track upon whioh'is a locomotive, both 1000- motive and track being provided' with my improved automatic coacting stopping devices. Fig. 2 is a'similar view of a portion of a locomotive and track and the electromagnetic means for shifting-theobstacles or stops into and out of working position; and Fig. 3 is atop plan view of a section of track, showing diagrammatically a number of stops and an'emergencystO pmg apparatus, Figs. 1

v ing with tn v brakes ,OIWltll the steam-supplyp1pe oi the, electric circuits.

Each engine on the line is provided with and 2', com ris ng a cylinder 6, com unic'at e compressed air supplyof tge boiler. In thisc'ylinder 6 reel rocates a piston 8',=;:the rod 9 of which is; e t in its extreme mutward posit-ion by t e upward- -turned end;ofthe lever i0, vertically niov during a. part able' ona pivot 30. When the train is running, the heavier and rear arm of lever'iO' is located at about'ten centimeters .abovmthe upper surface, ofthe rail, ,so asto clear all 01) structions save the'automatio stops. The piston-rod '9 is connectedwith the'rod 11, which is in. actuating connection with throttle-lever 12, and this .rod 1-1 also actuates,. fits stroke, the three-way val-ve l?) byjmeans-oft the-rod 14', kept in its normal-position by a' spring abutting against the upturned end 16 thereof.

nthe track'are arranged at ntervals on:

I Specification of Letters Patent. Application filed January 23,

ing a length of about two meters and arranged arallel to the axis of the track is sufiicient to raise the heavier arm of the beam so as to release the rod 9 of the piston and by allowing the steam to be cut off and reversed and the braking air-pressure to be put on to produce the stopping of the train "without shock.

The rod 9 carries with it in its motion the rod 11, which produces the reversing of the steam distribution in the slide-chest of the lo'comotive'by means of lever 12. The end of rod 11 before reaching the end of its stroke strikes against the end of rod 14 at 16, thus imparting motion to rod 14,- actuating the three-way valve 13 of the braking device, which is vibrated, and, as shown in Fig.1, the rod 11 of the bell-crank lever 49 also controls "the whistle of the locomotive so as to sound it u on-the actuation of lever 10.

T e movement of the obstacle or stop 1' into and out I of the working position in which it will contact with lever 10 so as to stop the train may be produced by any suitable signaling means and even by the passing trains themselves, and in this case Patented ZDec. 1 1, 1906. Y 1904. Serial No: 190,368.

stacles 1, Fig. 1,'each composed of a rail hav-' l i each locomotive, Fig. 2, blocks the section nto which it is entering and opens the section of traclobehind it, and to this end the 2, are controlled by an electric c rcuit 3 4 5,

andin this case a dynamo 19, usually driven I ifrom an axle, is arranged upon thelocomot'ive. which suppliesthe-current to an over-[ riding trolley-p olearranged under the engine, as'shown in T trolley-pole moves at about five centimeters e wheel 20 of this above the upper level of the rails on thejleft side of the track, the obstacle or stopbeing:

on the-r' ht side of the line and designated v by the re erence-letters a a a Fig. 3;

- 'An electric contact-rail 21 having a lengt of four meters, of the shape shownand raisin on a gradual incline from the level of the rai to about ten centimeters above this level, is

,located about fourhundred to five hundred "nieters aheadof each obstacle'or stop and on the opposite or'leftfside of the trael'gthe' purpose of which is to establish the electric circuit.

The trolley-wheel 20, when passing, is raised by and rolls upon the rail 21, thus closing the circuit and allowing the current to ass to the electromagnet 22 in the box 4, liig. 2, arranged under the obstacle or stop 1 Fig. 2. This obstacle or. stop is kept normally at about five centimeters above the rail and parallel to it and is about 2.10 centimeters long, and its pivot 23 is about ten centimeters from the rear end. Under the pivot 23of the stop is arranged a box containing two electromagnets 22 and 24. At the end of the small arm of the obstacle or stop 1 is suspended a counterweight 25, intended to decrease the force necessary. for raising the longer arm of the obstacle or stop. This counterweight 25 is made of soft ron, and under it is mounted the electromagnet 22, so that when the latter is excited the counterweight 25 is attracted and the long arm of the stop-is raised to twenty centimeters. After the passage of the current from trolley 20 to rail 21 has ceased the stop 1 has a tendency to fall under the influence of its own weight. However, to prevent this motion and to block the line until the trolley contacts with a second rail 21, arranged far ther on, the box contains the following device:

At about fifty centimeters from the pivot 23" of the obstacle or stop 1 a downwardlydepending sto -lever 26 is pivotally connected to the ong arm of the'stop 1 and this stop-lever projects into the box. When the obstacle or stop is raised twenty centimeters, as shown in Fig. 2 at 5, the rod 26 is raised five centimeters, and at this moment a second stop-lever 27 acted upon by a spring 28 slides under the end of the lever 26 and prevents the fall of the obstacle or stop and holds it in the raised position, so as to automatically contact with the operating-f lever 10 of any train which may endeavor to enter that section while it is in such raised position, and thus stops such train. The stoplever 27 is pivoted at the bottom, and secured to the same a short distance above the pivot-joint is a rod terminated by a block of soft iron 29, which is located adjacent to a second electromagnet 24, so that when a cur rent is sent through electromagnet' 24 the lever 27 is vibrated upon its pivot against the action of the spring 28, so as to free the counterweight 25 of the obstacle or stop 1 so that the latter will fall and the line he comes free for the passage of trains.

The second electroma net 24 only receives electric current from t e following station through the intermediary of counterweight 25 of said station, which only transmits the current after having contacted with the electromagnet 22. It follows from this combination that any obstacle or stop raised by the passage of a train can only fall so as to clear the track when the next obstacle has been raised.

It is evident that the first-that is, the purely mechanical-apparatus may be applied alone without the second or electrical a paratus; but the essential point of the w ole system resides in the automatic and simultaneous action of all the parts ada ted to produce the complete stop of a train wit out jar or stopthat is, the simultaneous action for this purpose of the brake, alarm-signals, whistle, and steam distribution when actuated from the track.

What I claim is 1. In a device of the class described, a piston normally under fluid-pressure, mechanism actuated upon the movement of the piston for causing shutting on of the motor, and for putting in operation the brakes of the train, means for holding the piston in a retracted position against the fluid-pressure and means for releasing the iston upon contactof part of the means wit a track-stop.

2. In adevice of the class described, a pis-' ton normally under fluid-pressure, mechanism actuated upon the movement of the isten for causing shutting off, and reversa of the motor, and for puttin in operation the brakes of the train, means For holding the piston in a retracted position against the fluidpressure, and means .for releasing the piston upon contact of part of the means with a track-stop. I, v

3. In a device of the class described, a plurali'ty of track-stops each comprising a lever longitudinal to the track pivoted adjacent to one end so as to vibrate vertically and inan electromagnet for raising the long arm of the track-stop from its normal position,

clined at the upper surface of theother end,,'

means for automatically locking the track- 1 stop in the raised position, an electroma et for releasing the locking means so as to a low the track-stop to return to its normal position, a circuit of conductors connecting the track-stop magnets of adjacent stops, means for electrically energizing the circuit upon the assage of a train, and means for causing the all of a recently-raised track-stop, upon the passage ofthe'train over the next stop, and the raising of such stop.

4. In a device of the class described, a plurality of track-stops each comprising a lever longitudinal to the track pivoted adjacent to one end so as to vibrate vertically and. inclined at the upper surface of the other end, an electromagnet for raising the long arm-of the track-stop from its normal position,

,means for automatically locking the trackst-op magnets of adjacent stops, means carried by the train for electrically energizing l the circuit as it passes the stop-stations, and means for causing the fall of the last-raised track-stop, upon the passage of the train over I the next following stop simultaneouslywith the raising of such sto 5. In a device 'of t c class described, the combination with a suitable track of a vehicl: mounted upon the track, stops actuated upon the passage of the vehicle so as to block the track until the vehicle has passed into another block-section, mechanism carried by the vehicle for causing proper actuation of the stops and mechanism for stopping the motor, reversing the same, setting the brakes and actuating a signal, also carried by the vehicle adapted to be automatically actuated upon contact with any of the stops when in the stopping positionl 6. In a device of the class described, a railway-track, a vehicle traveling upon the track, a plurality of movable electromagnetically-actuated stops arranged in series along the track connected by proper electric circuits normally broken, means carried by the vehicle for closing the broken circuits upon passage over the track, a source of electric energy carried by the vehicle for electrically energizing the circuits when so closed, in

such manner as to throw the stop just passed into the stopping position, and'to throw a stop to the rearward of that into the clear or non-stopping position.

7. In a device of the class described, a railway-track, a vehicle traveling upon the track, a plurality of movable'electromagnet' ically-actuated stops arranged in series along the track connected by proper electric circuits normally broken, means carried by the vehicle for closing the broken circuits upon passage over the track, means carried by the vehicle for electrically energizing the circuits when so closed, in such manner as to throw the stop just passed into the stopping position, andjto throw a stop to the rearward of that .into the clear or non-stopping position, and mechanism also carried by 'the vehicle for stopping the motor, reversing the same and setting the brakes adapted to be automatically actuated upon contact with any of the stops when in the'stopping position.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

I MAURICE PRIVAT.

Witnesses:

MADAME DARI, LOUISE CoUziNEs. 

